Comparison of Different Quantitative Approaches to 18F-Fluoride PET Scans

The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between 18F-fluoride bone metabolic measures obtained by nonlinear regression (NLR), Patlak analysis, and standardized uptake value (SUV) for a wide range of normal and pathologic bone conditions. In patients imaged twice, changes in metabolic rates were determined using the different quantitation methods. Methods: In 33 patients 2–51 mo after resection of a bone tumor of the limbs, a total of 42 dynamic PET scans were performed after injection of 250–350 MBq 18F-fluoride. SUV, fluoride bone influx rate obtained by Patlak analysis (KPat), and fluoride bone influx rate obtained by NLR (KNLR) were calculated in each patient for the bone graft, the contralateral normal side, and the spine, if within the field of view. Results: SUV ranged from 0.4 to 9.9, KPat from 0.0035 to 0.0742 mL/min/mL, and KNLR from 0.0027 to 0.0737 mL/min/mL. Significant linear correla